Essay # 2

Buddah, Probably Amitabha

Tang dynasty (618-907), early 7^th century

Amitabha was a buddah whom people worship, all those who worship  Amitabha  will be reborn in western paradise, also called the Pure Land.

The Sculpture of Amitabha is a 3D, estimated length of 2ft.  This is a stylized sculpture because it’s a representation of how Amitabha might have looked.  When I look at this sculpture I see a emotional response to color are both cultural and personal, what I mean by that, its traditional to see Buddha in this form little bit of orange , brown , and  red . If you were to see monks and how they dress you will see those colors in their uniform. The Texture of this sculpture is rusty and flakey it was made with wood, clay, and hemp cloth soaked in lacquer.  

Untitled (Skull)

Artist: Piotr Uklański (Polish, born Warsaw 1968)

Date: 2000

Medium: Platinum print

Dimensions: Framed: 21 5/8 in. × 17 5/8 in. × 1 1/2 in. (54.9 × 44.8 × 3.8 cm)

Classification: Photographs

         I don’t know much about this photo, It caught my eye because I was it all around the museum so I made it my business to go and view in myself, it’s a beautiful photograph of figurative art, its representing a women body as well as a mans body. With the bodies they form a skull image, this 2D photo has value it ranges from light to dark, light being the bodies and dark being the background. The texture of this photo is smooth. My opinion this artist was trying to tell his spectators that the human body can form any image that you can think of.

Moulting

Simone Leigh

Installation view located at the Tilton gallery

21X9X10’’

    Simone Leigh created a 3D sculpture of six different images that represent women’s role in African and African American history. Leigh creates ceramic sculptures; with each piece of sculptures she designs their hair peace with different organic shapes. For the faces she uses a depiction of a African American women, the color of the faces are black. The texture of the faces is a smooth surface, as well the hair. I consider these pieces stylized because its not real, doesn’t look like someone specific but still has a pleasant look to it. I chose this installation because it reminds me of my childhood. Growing up I had thick and kinky hair, it was not the easiest to maintain. My sisters would try the weirdest hairstyles similar to Simone installations, at that moment I thought it was a horrible experience but as I got older I grew to value my culture, my hair, and my self as a person of color.

Gold Sandals, Toe and finger stalls

Dynasty 18, Reign of Thutmose III (ca.1979 – 1425 BC)

       I came across this interesting Egyptian jewelry , It’s a 3D gold sandal as well as toes and finger caps. These were found in the tombs of tutankanumans mummy. They were created as a decoration for those who’ve passed away in a family of royalty. The color of this piece looks more like a copper then gold. The texture of this piece is a smooth metallic. The organic shapes would be the round edges of the sandals a well as the finger caps. I decided to choose this piece because Im into fashion, i can see an artists like Rihanna or lady gaga wearing something like this in the near future. Something so historical can be used in our future is what typical happens.  

Garden at Saint – Adresse

Claude Monte

French, Paris 1840- 1946

Medium – Oil on Canvas

Dimension – 38 5/8 x 51 1/8 inches

Claude Monte painted a 2D depiction of a summer day at a resort in Saint Adresse Northern France with his family in 1867. As a spectator I see a women and a men seated watching the view of the ocean. There is also another women and man maybe a couple closer to the terrace talking to each other, the women is wearing a long with dress with an umbrella covering herself from the sun. The sea view shows a cool color of blue, in the sea there’s also a few boats. The foreground of this painting there’s a few bushes surrounding the terrace. The green bushes have a few flowers with bright colors of red , yellow , baby blue and white. Attached to the terrace there’s also are two flags one of France and the other of Saint Adresse.

In conclusion, All these paintings are in the Metropolitan Museum because they were important events in history.  These art works help us expand our minds and help us explore our curiosity.